In an area of Arizona south of the Utah border and east of the Colorado River, a group of ranchers appealed to the Department of the Interior for relief against the great herds of wild mustangs that roamed the range, already impovishered by dust storms and drought. The U.S. government contractors, under the authority of the Taylor Grazing Bill, undertook the task of rounding up nearly 3000 wild mustangs using airplanes, mounted cowboys and bright reflectors. Frank Gay wrote a wild horse story built around this impending roundup, a white stallion and a black stallion who are rivals over a group of mares, a rancher's son and a crusty old timer.